The Chain of Enslavement: A Young Adult's Tale of
The Chain of Enslavement: A Young Adult’s Tale of Slave Leia and Jabba the Hutt, Part II: A more detailed look into the legends version of Leia’s stay at Jabba’s Palace. Leia’s eyes widened at the sheer size of what loomed before her, only to squeeze shut as Jabba gave a tug on her chain. The Sail Barge, as Jabba had called it, was a massive hovercraft, its deck crowned with three huge, red qcanopies that did bear some resemblance to the sails of a wind-driven vehicle. Its massive engines were roaring, and it was already afloat, yet even more deep thrumming sounds arose as more of its workings came to life. “Impressive, isn’t it?” Jabba said behind Leia, slackening the chain; had she been asked this during another situation entirely, Leia might have agreed. Please, Luke, she thought to the air around her, praying he could hear her, wherever he was. Please, please tell me you can get us out of this. You’re our only hope. After a final negotiation proved wholly pointless, Luke had threatened Jabba, using the Force to extract a blaster from a nearby guard’s holster--but Jabba had expected as much, and quickly dropped Luke (and a hapless guard who’d mistakenly stood too close to the Jedi) through a trapdoor, into a huge pit in the floor below. The Hutt and his cronies had gathered around the hidden grate that revealed itself from the floor as a massive, carnivorous beast had emerged from the shadows. The beast had effortlessly devoured the guard, but Luke, ever full of surprises, managed to evade it long enough to activate a switch and dropped a massive, spiked metal door onto the beast, piercing and crushing its neck and killing it instantly. Jabba, shocked and furious, had ordered Luke, Han, and Chewbacca to be brought before him for punishment. Leia didn’t want her friends to have to see her in her pathetic state of submissive captivity, and had made a show of struggling away from Jabba’s groping hands as they were brought before them. Through C3-PO’s translations, Jabba had sentenced the three Rebels to death--and in the most diabolical of ways. They were to be brought far out into the Dune Sea, to a location known as the Pit of Carkoon, where an “all-powerful” monster known as the Sarlacc would consume them...and digest them over a thousand years. Leia’s heart had stopped as she watched the guards push her friends out of the room. Even as she watched a still-disguised Lando among them--perhaps the only other playing card they had left--she had no idea of how they could possibly get out of this situation. After listening to Han and Luke exclaim their defiances, Jabba had ordered them to be taken away. Leia hadn’t resisted him as he’d pulled her to himself once again, hadn’t struggled when his hand dropped to her shoulder and slid uncomfortably onto her exposed upper chest. She hadn’t had the heart for it. She had nothing--nothing--to go on but some kind of empty hope in Luke’s parting words to the Hutt: “That’s the last mistake you’ll ever make.” The exit from the audience chamber had been one of the longest trips of Leia’s life--and, despite the dark, alien surroundings and the disturbing context of her captivity, it was uncomfortably similar to her doom-laden imprisonment by the Empire, in the moments before she watched the Death Star obliterate her homeworld of Alderaan. Leia had only been too glad that Jabba’s repulsorlift-driven throne had just entered a pitch-black hallway when her tears, long overdue, had finally hit. After a seemingly endless trip through the palace’s labyrinthine corridors, the throne had finally entered the cavernous hangars, where the crowds were piling into the Sail Barge and onto a number of land skiffs to accompany it into the Dune Sea. Just then, Leia briefly thought she saw Luke, Han, and Chewie in the far reaches of the hangar, but the milling crowd was so thick they were quickly lost before her eyes could focus, and she sighed. Jabba yanked up on the chain. Gagging, Leia forced herself to her feet and begrudgingly assumed the slave's embrace, shoving her half-naked body against the Hutt’s bulk, hating the feeling of his squishy, greasy flesh upon her bare stomach--and even more so the fact that she was becoming used to the sensation. “Mmmh,” Jabba grumbled, and Leia gasped when she felt one of his hands cup her backside in a most uncomfortable and unmistakable grope. His other, chain-wielding hand pressed to her side, the cold metal making her shiver against him. The harem-mistress, Melina, had told Leia not to worry about Jabba’s intentions, that the Hutt was “a pervert, even by Hutt standards, not that perverse.” Right now and after a number of other, equally disturbing occasions, Leia highly questioned that statement; she was only too grateful for the distraction, however temporary it may be. "This trip will be a very important time for you, girl," Jabba grumbled, his doughy rolls squishing and rubbing against the front of her chest as he spoke. "You will watch the last of your old life fall away, and will begin to learn the ways--" "Jabba!" Leia’s heart passed a single beat as Jabba’s eyes lifted from hers to seek his caller, looking fairly annoyed. “Master Jabba!” the voice called again, and Leia turned her head to identify it, and out of the bustling crowd, a red-haired woman appeared. Leia recognized her from the harem; she was now wrapped in silks and shawls the light blue of the Tattoine sky, their fabric so translucent fabric that there was little beneath left to the imagination. She stopped beside the throne and repeated, "Master Jabba?" ”What is it?" Jabba grumbled. The woman leapt atop the throne with such grace and ease that for a moment Leia thought she'd floated up. She stepped just behind Leia and said, "I would like to offer my services to you during your trip,” at which Leia frowned, more puzzled than hopeful. "Not this time, Arica," Jabba told the slave. "It is important that this one be present." Leia turned back to Jabba, grimacing as his hand squeezed her buttock through its thin cloth cover, embedding her pelvis more deeply in the dimpled front of his belly. He chuckled, her disgust clearly not lost to him. "So, I could come, too!" Arica said, and Leia saw her appear in the corner of her vision. Something was not rubbing Leia right about her, but she couldn’t quite place it. "Besides, you know how, ah...cooperative I can be…” Leia shivered as she felt Arica’s slender arm slip around her waist, right above Jabba's groping hand. Before Leia could even think about what that loaded statement could mean, Arica pressed in beside her, assuming her own embrace against the Hutt. Leia tensed as she saw Arica's face moving inexorably closer to her own, and then suddenly she knew exactly what was going on, and that there was little, if anything, that she could do about it. She closed her eyes and felt Arica’s warm breath on her lips, and waited for the inevitable. "Leave now, Arica," Jabba said. "I do not want you with us. That is an order, girl." Leia opened her eyes in time to see Arica, her lips parted, pulling her head back and glaring at Jabba. “But Jabba--” “Now, Arica!” With an annoyed sigh, Arica released Leia and pulled away from Jabba so quickly that his greasy blubber made a gross sucking sound, and Leia was disgusted to see his slime had soiled the slave’s clothes. The slave glared at Leia as she passed, and Leia felt a shiver travel through her body. The slave stepped into the crowd and vanished from sight. What had that been all about? Although no Force user, Jabba practically read her mind, for he chuckled and purred to her, “A most worthwhile offer, but I would hate to be distracted from the main event. Arica is a bit...enthusiastic." He chuckled, his flabby flesh jiggling again. "Come to think of it, she started out just as feisty as you.” Jabba chuckled with sick amusement. “Take that for what it’s worth, slave.” Then Jabba’s huge, dripping tongue emerged, dripping slime on her exposed upper chest, and Leia closed her eyes as he kissed her. Finally boarding the barge, Jabba maneuvered his throne deep into the craft. His pet lizard-monkey jumped from the throne and scuttled off to some far corner. Once they parked, Jabba forced Leia back against his belly as they waited for their departure. The sounds of other vehicles exiting the hangar made Leia’s heart sink even deeper into her chest, and as the barge continued to idle for the better part of another hour, she wondered if they would ever actually leave. When they finally departed the palace, Jabba opened the barge’s multitude of windows. Despite the fans blowing all around them, the hot air sweeping through the barge was still sweltering, and Leia tried to keep some distance between herself and the Hutt, as much and as often as she could. At one point, Jabba had his band play music, then had Leia dance for him. Once it was done, he kissed her, then told her she may look outside for a few minutes. He tossed some of the chain’s slack at her feet, and Leia guardedly took up his offer, stepping off of the throne and moving to the windows across the way. Leia gazed out the window at the huge, orange hills of sand as they rolled by, took a deep breath of the hot (but amazingly fresh) air, let it out--and then gasped. Han and Luke were on one of the skiffs outside, driving right alongside the sail barge. And Chewie, and Lando, right beyond on another one. Leia leaned in towards the window and placed her arms against the frame, watching her loved ones. Leia only came back to her senses when a nightmare sound interrupted her: the chain jangling. “You’ve looked long enough, Leia,” Jabba called behind her, and the chain tightened. Determined to stay away from him as long as possible, she glared back at the Hutt. Two jawas were helping bring the chain’s remaining slack back to Jabba; she knew her time was up, but then Bib Fortuna appeared, carrying a goblet half as as tall as her leg, full of dark liquid. Jabba’s attention was immediately consumed by the drink as his majordomo climbed up beside him on the throne, and Leia took the opportunity to continue looking out the window. Over the next couple of minutes, Han said something to Luke, who replied with a confident smirk. She wondered what they were saying; no doubt their usual sarcasm-riddled banter, for even then Han inclined his head and said something out of the corner of his mouth in the way that even now made Leia feel warm, deep down inside. Then the chain was pulled again, much harder this time, and with a loud, half-choked gag, Leia was easily yanked away from the window. The chain was a cacophony of metallic jangling as she stumbled after it, grunting as she struggled to keep her feet beneath her. She nearly collided with the throne’s stone facade, and with the best of her athletic reflexes, she leapt up onto it; however, her momentum continued to throw her forward. Swinging her legs and arms out to brace herself, she half-landed, half-climbed upon Jabba’s sloped bulk, straightening and landing against him in a most graceless impact, her belly and thighs actually smacking into the thick, doughy flesh--and in a most perfect slave’s embrace. Jabba chuffed a thick, smelly breath in Leia’s face as she tried to catch her own, her pulse pounding in her ears. Leia tried to pull away, but then something pressed her between her shoulder blades--fingers, she realized, recognizing their taloned tips as belonging to Bib. He pushed his hand fully against her spine, pinning her against Jabba, who narrowed his eyes. “Soon, Slave Leia,” he cooed, his words slurred, and his breath rank and heavy with the wine, “you will learn to appreciate me.” As he spoke, Leia turned her head away and saw he was holding the goblet nearby, still very full of its dark red liquid, and moving quickly closer. Tensing, Leia looked back at Jabba. It wasn’t that she questioned the wine’s taste--if anything, it would likely be foul to her palate--but the intent behind it. A clatter interrupted them, and she turned to see R2-D2 and C3-PO had literally run into one another; a tray had fallen behind R2, and with it, a number of glasses and bottles full of boozes he’d been serving. As the two droids bickered and several jawas came by to help clean up, Leia silently thanked Artoo for the distraction. Turning back to Jabba, Leia watched as he wordlessly offered her the goblet. She reluctantly raised her hands to take it from him, but then he pulled it away, and she lowered her hands in humiliated realization. Blushing furiously, Leia waited for the Hutt to position the goblet before her in his hand until its glass rim touched her lips. He unsteadily tipped it up and forced her to drink. As she’d anticipated, the wine’s flavor was bitter and smoky, but it had a fruity flavor that was surprisingly inoffensive; she swallowed, but the Hutt raised the glass higher, and Leia had to force herself to take another mouthful to keep up. She gulped it down hard, but the Hutt kept tipping up the goblet, and Leia blurted into the glass, splurting into the wine, and pulled her head back--and the still-pouring wine spilled down her chin and splashed all over her neck and upper chest. She cried aloud, spitting and coughing, feeling a rush of warmth inside her--and a wall of flesh beginning to quake and jiggle against her half-naked body as the Hutt burst out laughing. “HO-Ho-ho-ho-ho, HAH-Hah-hah-hah-hyyaaiigh!” Groaning her disgust, Leia raised a hand to try to wipe some of the wine from her chest. As she did, Jabba licked the side of her face. She groaned louder, then glared at him. "It would be a shame to waste good wine," Jabba said, licking her face again and chuckling wetly. "Remove your top, girl." Leia's heart stopped. He had not just said that, had he? Surely, her understanding of Huttese was flawed; he simply couldn't have-- "The easier to clean you, my pretty," he said, the mockery in his voice unmistakable, and Bib chuckled behind her. And then Leia knew exactly what was going on. Any remaining doubts she had about the Hutt's intentions for her were quashed in that moment. He really did wish for Leia to strip--to willingly reveal her nakedness to him; it didn't matter what he did or didn't do next. Melina had clearly either lied or been mistaken when she'd said that Jabba wasn't so perverse that she should be concerned. No, Jabba was absolutely a pervert among Hutts--and fully intending to enjoy the vulnerable state of Leia's body. Leia knew that things look grim for her friends, and even more so for her; any resistance she showed now would surely be met with some form of cruel punishment--or something far worse, if his desired actions were any indication. Summoning up all the courage she had, Leia took a deep breath, glared into the Hutt's eyes, and uttered a firm "No." She waited for Jabba to get angry, to growl and say something threatening. Instead, he merely grumbled, "Take it off, slave." "I said no," Leia repeated, louder. Jabba, unfazed and seemingly unsurprised at the protest, narrowed his eyes. "Consider your situation, girl," he said coldly. You have no friends to help you, and you have no royalty. Here, you are no Rebel--and you are certainly no princess. You are mine, and you will serve me, my pretty Slave Leia." "I will never serve you!" Leia snapped. After a long time, Leia was surprised and not a little suspicious of Jabba when he released her and let her sit down before him. During the long trip into the Dune Sea--over an hour, from what Leia could gather--she waited for Jabba to inevitably make good on his original promise from when she’d been captured, for him to thoroughly enjoy whatever sick, lecherous pleasures he would get from her company. However, he did no such thing; he all but ignored her in favor of food and wine, only pulling on her chain once or twice by accident. It was almost as if he were showing her some form of respect during this difficult period as she came to terms with herself--with what she was turning into, and in some small way, Leia was grateful for that. Soon, the Sail Barge began to slow down. conversely, Leia's heart, having only just returned to its normal rhythm, began to race. They were almost at the Pit of Carkoon. A firmer tug on the chain made Leia groan, tensing. She glared up at Jabba, but when he ordered her to rejoin him, she forced herself to rise and press against him with little hesitation. Resistance didn’t really matter now, did it? Slipping a hand over her backside, Jabba rammed Leia's pelvis firmly into the front of his belly, a silent reminder of how he preferred the slave's embrace. As he wishes, Leia thought sourly, and her hips followed suit. Satisfied, Jabba released her, and Slave Leia remained pressed up against him. "After the execution," he purred, "we shall go back to the palace to celebrate. Perhaps then I could more formally introduce you to Arica..." He licked his lips, and Leia turned away with a fearful whimper, her skin crawling with disgust. He continued to hold her as he grabbed a frog from his food bowl. Leia looked away, but was left listening as he stuffed the thrashing, squealing thing between his toothless gums and swallowed. Leia felt Jabba's bulky flabs jiggle wetly against her chest, and groaned her disgust. Then the Hutt belched horribly, and Leia, feeling nauseous in the cloud of miasma that welled out over her senses. To make matters worse, she heard Jabba slurp his lips, and she felt the tip of tongue lick at her face, and she had to suppress the urge to throw up. I may be turning into his slave, Leia thought in a brief attempt at pride, but I’m definitely not going to get used to his mannerisms. "Huaghhhhllllllhhhhh..." Jabba gurgled, belching afresh as he began to licked her face again, this time with more intent. Leia moaned her repulsion and tried to push herself back, but the Hutt hugged his chubby arm around her shoulders, his wet hand making her shiver, and feeling her resolve wither, Leia started to struggle. Jabba began to laugh, pulling her even closer, licking her neck again, his tongue slipping and slopping over the middle of her chest, and Leia cried aloud as its tip began to poke down between her-- There was a crackle in the air, and an announcement came over the loudspeakers hidden in the ceilings: the caravan had arrived at the Pit of Carkoon. Jabba released Leia to maneuver his throne closer to the windows. He didn't seem to notice or care when Leia stepped aside and faced away from him. He commanded the heavy metal shades to be raised, and as they did, golden shafts of sunlight washed in over Leia's body, quickly drying the traces of slime that remained on her exposed skin. Around them, the crowd moved closer to the windows, leaving plenty of room for the Hutt and his slave. Outside, the landscape position themselves in a great semicircle around the edges of a huge pit in the sand, as if a cave had opened in the ground. Leia stepped forward, craning her neck to look down--and her eyes widened when she saw the bottom of the pit. An enormous, leathery cone pointed down into the middle of the pit, its apex a ragged hole. Radiating above it were rings of hard flesh, lined with downward-pointing spikes--undeniably fangs. Clusters of tentacles poked out of different points on the thing's periphery, sensing and recognizing the activity above, beckoning. The Sarlacc was nothing less than a massive mouth in the sand--and it was waiting for its next meal. And directly above it, Luke, Han, and Chewie were being ushered to the edge of their skiff. Leia balled her fists at her sides, her heart thundering, as she waited. Just then, Boba Fett appeared nearby, his posture suggesting that he was ready to launch his one-man arsenal into action, if necessary. But why should he? It wasn't as if Luke could-- Get ready. Luke! Leia had to suppress a smile as his Force-voice entered her thoughts. She looked out across the Sarlacc and saw the Jedi being ushered onto a plank that was extending from the side of the skiff. I am, Leia thought back to him, though ready for what, she had no idea. 3PO appeared, hefting a huge, heavy microphone. Jabba told him exactly what to say, and Leia watched in dread as the droid moved before the windows, raised it, and spoke. "Victims of the almighty Sarlacc: his excellency hopes that you will die...honorably. But should any of you wish to beg for mercy, the great Jabba the Hutt will now listen to your pleas." "Threepio!" Han shouted, and the audience fell quiet as they listened with amusement. "You tell that slimy piece of worm-ridden...filth, he'll get no such pleasure from us!" As a collective chuckle arose, Leia watched Han turn to Chewie and say something, to which the Wookee growled. "Jabba!" Luke called, stepping onto the plank. "This is your last chance. Free us, or die." Jabba burst out laughing, and Leia looked back as Threepio handed him the microphone. "Move him into position!" he called. Leia held her breath as she watched a guard on the skiff push Luke towards the end of the plank, directly over the middle of the Sarlacc. Are you ready, Leia? Leia thought nothing back; she simply, helplessly stared at Luke, licked and pursed her dry lips, and waited. "Put him in!" Jabba bellowed, and Leia closed her eyes, her pulse seeming to freeze in her veins. This was it. If Luke died now, there was no hope. Her friends would die--Han would die. The Rebellion would lose several key members; it was easy to imagine that the Empire would take advantage of this, and would find ways to ensure their power across the galaxy--and all of this, all of their struggles to free Han, would have been for naught. And as for Leia, she would face something worse than death: she would remain enslaved to Jabba. She had a little doubt that his loathsome advances would quickly graduate into far crueler and demoralizing actions. After what he had done to--with--Leia earlier, it wasn't hard to imagine just where the Hutt's twisted perversions would go. And all the while, her will would continue to wear down, until her spirit fully broke, and she came to think of Jabba the Hutt, in every way, as her master- Now! Luke's Force-voice seemed to shout, and Leia opened her eyes--and when she saw what had begun outside, her hope returned.